Posted on 01/09/2010 4:54:45 PM PST by Travis McGee
Sure, we all know that classic line from the movie Crocodile Dundee. Sometimes, bigger IS better. Like when a punk pulls out a small switchblade.
But the problem is, you can't carry a giant bowie knife concealed very easily. And anyway, if you're going to carry a giant one-pound-plus hunting knife, you might as well carry a pistol, right?
Well, maybe not. Maybe there's an alternative. I came across this knife recommendation in Fernando Aguirre's book "The Modern Survival Manual." It's about his experiences in Argentina since the 2002 monetary collapse. He has extensive, detailed chapters on personal defense, including with firearms and knives. He recommended this particular knife as a great value, and I bought one. It's changed how I look at self defense.
The recommended knife is the folding "Vaquero Grande" by Cold Steel. I purchased mine off of the internet for $80, without really shopping around. For comparison, I photographed it next to a big, heavy Colt hunting/survival knife with a fixed blade.
If you grip this big folding knife in the middle of the handle where it's most comfortable, you will notice that you have eight inches of blade extending past your fistThis is the same blade extension as the big Colt survival knife, gripped normally. But try putting that big hunting knife in your pocket like this! (The black macrame string extension is my own addition, to make it faster and easier to draw.)In your pocket, you can't tell the big Vaquero Grande folder from the average folding knife, which has about a four inch blade, and only a four inch extension from the hand when open.
Note the overall size of the heavy Colt hunting/survival knife, compared to the folded size of the Vaquero Grande. Yes, the folding knife fits easily into any front pocket, and doesn't look any different from an average folding knife that many folks carry today. But when it comes out, look out! "THAT'S a knife!"
Now, in Florida where I live, my CCW permits me to legally carry all types of concealed weapons, not just handguns. You may have to look into your own local laws. But carrying a BIG folding knife does open up some new options.
Inside of the 21 foot "Tueller drill" distance, a blade actually has some advantages over a pistol. It won't run out of bullets, and it's much harder to wrestle away or disarm, to name a couple.
The curvature of this blade is not based on style or looks, but is intentional. The downward curve of the fully serrated knife belly gives it the deep cutting/slashing power associated with the Ghurka knife. The recurved tip makes it an effective stabber. And so on. It's not my intention to get into knife design or knife fighting tactics. I just wanted to present another option for a VERY effective lightweight weapon that you can carry in your pocket. I don't leave home without mine.
Saturday Night Weaponry Ping
Cool. I want one!
BTTT
That is a beautiful weapon. Would you please add me to your ping list?
I just hijacked our CW2 (Civil War Two) ping list for this vanity. It’s just a CW2 list, usually. Still want on it?
The constitution gives us the right to be armed, it doesn't say firearms, it says arms - the founding fathers would be aghast at the idea that a knife would be a felony (and don't even think of a real sword...) We really do need to push those laws back, pitched as anti-gang legislation, that has limited our rights to self defense.
Because it's a folder, in my county, it would be perfectly legal, but in the neighboring county, it exceeds the permitted limit of 2 whole inches.
What I mean by all of this is: know your laws, which I'm sure you do, but others may want to investigate, before they follow with your recommendation.
You bet, that’s why I wrote to check your own local laws first.
You did, I missed it, and now I gotta hang my head. ;)
You certainly can carry a large fixed blade..
Here’s how
Check Mike Sastre’s work at
www.rivercitysheaths.com
Get a southern comfort sheath and you can hide a cold steel trailmaster in your pants.
Trust me, Ive done it successfully.
Strangely enough in California its perfectly legal to carry the biggest folder you can find without a permit, but not a fixed blade and not a handgun without a permit, but its almost impossible to get a permit to carry in Cali.
Is the glass half empty, or half full?
Maybe I'm a sick puppy, but I look at all of those as big advantages for me!
I don't consider myself under-armed when I'm carrying only my Vaquero Grande. Sometimes I just leave the old pistola en casa.
According to the Cold Steel website, the Vaquero Grande is both “sold out” and “discontinued.”
Get Gabe Suarez’s DVD on folder fighting. He teaches how to draw and deploy the largest Cold Steel folder and use it to tear up your oppponent.
Fernando Aguirre's recommendation must have led to a run on them!
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